


I'm a Detective

by Zurenika



Category: SF9 (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Case Fic, Crack, Gen, I repeat Inseong is a Bowtie, Inseong is a Bowtie., Murder Mystery, Mystery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:15:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24041203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zurenika/pseuds/Zurenika
Summary: Youngbin buys a bowtie from a garage sale not knowing that the thing has a life of its own.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Inseong is a bowtie.   
> Yes, you read that right.   
> Please, this is a crack fic. A lot of things won't make sense but i'm trying to make them make sense. Please forgive me and please enjoy lol 
> 
> Oh and the italicized underlined sentences are all bowtie!Inseong hehehe

“Youngban-ah, are you busy?”

“I wouldn’t be answering this phone if I were busy?” He replied, squeezing the phone between his shoulder and ear as he put on socks.

Jaeyoon chuckled. “Boss got that party and we’re a little short on staff. So, if you like, I can sign you up as additional help,”

“When is it?” Youngbin asked, walking towards the kitchen and pulling a small calendar towards him.

“It’s on the 23rd. The party starts at 7pm but of course, we have to be there to set up and stuff.”

“I can make that work,” he replied, already encircling the date on the calendar and writing the words, ‘catering’ on the small box. Accepting the job would mean that he’ll have to forego his only rest day but hey, the job will only be for a few hours and the extra cash would definitely help.

“Okay, cool. We’ll meet up at the resto at 3pm and go from there, yeah?”

Youngbin hummed. It wasn’t his first time helping at that restaurant so he’s familiar with how they operate. “Okay, see you! Oh, and Youngbin, wear a bowtie,”

Youngbin scrunched his eyes shut, he doesn’t have a bowtie and he can’t think of anyone he knows who has one. “Okay, okay,” he huffed.

+++++

If Jaeyoon hadn’t texted him 3 days before the event, Youngbin wouldn’t have remembered about it at all. Work that week has been so exhausting since he had to take extra shifts with one of his co-workers resuming classes.

The bowtie, ok?’ Jaeyoon’s text read and shit, he completely forgot about that.

Youngbin swore that he’ll try to find one as soon as his shift ends for that day.

4pm and Youngbin found himself walking back to his apartment, a bag of groceries on one hand and his phone in the other. He did find some bowties but they were fucking expensive and he just couldn’t see the point of spending that much for a little piece of clothing that he’ll use for only a few hours.

Taeyang, one of the kids from the coffee shop, told him about a garage sale happening just a block away from his place. He said there’s a lot of used clothes and stuff and Youngbin is now on his way there. He was really hoping he’ll find one.

There were a few people looking around at the stuff and Taeyang wasn’t kidding when he said that there was a ton of clothes in the garage sale. He started to walk around, shifting the bag of groceries in his arm. Youngbin spotted a rack with some suits on it and he started to make his way there, navigating the people and stuff scattered all around.

He was a few steps away from the clothes rack when something caught his eye. He stopped and picked up the wooden box laying a good distance away from some books.

The box was made of a beautiful dark wood and quite heavy for its size. There were no engravings or any other marks and a quick inspection of the bottom resulted in the same. He opened it carefully, surprised to see an ordinary black bowtie sitting on top of plush velvet.

“You can have that for 10,000won,” a voice said. He turned on his heels, meeting the gaze of an old woman. She smiled and repeated the price.

“Halmeonie, don’t you think it’s too much for 10,000 won? It’s just a bowtie!” Youngbin said respectfully.

“Okay, 5,000 then.”

“3,000?” Youngbin countered, jutting his bottom lip and looking at the old woman with his big, round eyes.

She shook her head but a smile was playing on her lips. “Okay, fine,” she huffed. “3,000 then.”

Youngbin smiled and gave her the exact amount, thanking her profusely. 

+++++

Youngbin met Jaeyoon and the rest of the crew in the restaurant. They were just loading up the last of the boxes to be brought to the mansion. After a quick round of introduction, they all trooped inside the waiting bus and went on their way.

The concrete buildings slowly fell all around them giving way to more grassy lands and trees. The bus turned onto a dirt road and continued to run past what seemed to be a forest. After about 10 minutes, the bus drove past all the trees and into a wide clearing.

The house stood at the foot of the mountain, white walls stark against the green of the trees. A hush fell inside the vehicle as the bus brought them closer to the building.

Jaeyoon’s boss was waiting for them by the entrance and after giving them a few instructions, they all went inside and started setting up.

+++++

The clock struck 7 and the first of the guests started trickling in.

Youngbin and the other guys won’t really do much, just walk around carrying trays of food and drinks and of course clean up after the guests. All in all, it was pretty chill set up and Youngbin was really glad he took up the job.

He was just about to return to the kitchen to refill his tray when a bloodcurdling scream was heard from the second floor. Everyone turned their heads in the direction it came from and a sudden hush fell inside the room. Even the music stopped playing. In the silence, the sound of heels clacking on the stairs echoed throughout the room and suddenly, a woman, wearing a bright red dress came into view- her make up ruined by the tears streaming incessantly down her face.

“D-dead, t-t-there’s a b-body,” she rasped before fainiting.

If this was any other situation, Youngbin would have laughed out loud. But as soon as the dull thud of the woman’s body resounded, the room went into an uproar and everyone began filing out the exits. He was jostled to the sides as guests tried to get to the doors.

_ Dead body? _

Youngbin froze. The voice was close – too close – for his comfort. He shook his head, chalking it all up to the shock and the panic that's currently gripping everyone in the room.

He placed the tray on top of one of the tables and started walking back to the kitchens when he heard it again.

_ Where is the dead body? _

He whipped his head around but at this time, almost everyone is halfway across the room. Youngbin was standing all alone in one corner with no one around.

_ Can you hear me? _

He jumped. It was louder this time. And there was no more mistaking where it was coming from.

_ Hello! Can you understand me? _

Youngbin’s eyes grew wide as he slowly dipped his head to look at the black bowtie around his neck.

_ HELLLOOOOOO! _

Youngbin jumped and made a grab for it. But as soon as his hand gripped the edges of the bow, it started screaming and all he can do was let go.

_ Please don’t do that again. _

What the fuck! What the actual fuck! Fuck!

_ I heard there’s a dead body? _

“Uh, hi?” Youngbin said, still looking at the thing around his neck.

_ Oh, thank goodness you understand me. Now, boy, take me to the corpse. _

“Excuse me?”

_ Didn’t you hear me? I said take me to the corpse. _

“No. What? Do you even know what you are?” Youngbin asked. A part of him couldn’t believe what was happening and another part of him was wondering why the hell he was talking to his bowtie.

_ Yes, I am well aware that I am a bowtie and since I’m incapable of moving without you can you please just get a move on? We have a murder to solve! _

“A what?” Youngbin exclaimed.

_ Murder my dear boy. Murder. As in somebody took another person’s life. Or did the term murder suddenly changed definitions? _

Youngbin can’t, couldn’t – what the hell is he supposed to do? And what, why is this happening to him. Surely, this must be a dream. He pinched his arm and whimpered. It’s painful so this must be … real?

_ I’m sure you have a lot of questions but for now. Can you just trust me? The more we stand here the more the evidence grows cold. _

“But I’m just a waiter,” he whispered to no one in particular.

_ Ohh, waiter. So is this a restaurant? Or a party? _

“A party” he answered. Youngbin must be going crazy. Maybe this is all the stress finally getting to him. Yes, the stress, that explains it.

_Oh how perfect. What better way to murder someone than right under the noses of a lot of people. Come on, kid. We have a murder to solve_!

“WHAT EVEN! I TOLD YOU I’M JUST A FUCKING WAITER!” he yelled. \

_ Yes, yes. And so what? I’ll help you become a detective. A waiter detective. Oh, how wonderful. Now let’s go! _

“Go to where?” Youngbin hissed.

_ To the body? Didn’t I make myself clear? _

Oh, right, to the body. Youngbin looked around. Most of the people are filing back inside the ballroom. From where he was standing, he can see a man shouting and waving in front of the crowd.

“-se stay here. We are from the police. Please stay calm. We’ll just get a couple of statements from you guys and-“

_ Hey, the body. Come on now! _

Youngbin closed his eyes, taking a few deep breaths. He couldn’t believe this is happening. He can’t believe that he’s even doing this but he found himself slipping to the side of the room, and making his way up the stairs. He turned to look back at the crowd once more and only noticed now that the policeman who was still talking to the crowd was wearing formal clothes.

“Thank goodness they invited the police,” he muttered under his breath.

_ Oh, thank goodness indeed.  _

Youngbin didn’t know why but he imagined the bowtie rolling his-it’s eyes when saying that.

_ What’s your name? My name’s Te- Inseong.  _

Younbing glanced at the thing around his neck. A little bit wary. Should he even give it his name? What if it places a curse on him or something and turns him into another bowtie? Are there other speaking bowties? What the fuck is happening?!

“Youngbin. Kim Youngbin.” He found himself saying. It was too late to take the words back.

_ What a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kim. I hope we’ll have a wonderful time solving this crime.  _

Youngbin finally reached the second floor landing. He stopped not knowing where exactly the body was found. There were tons of rooms on both sides. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he finally opened them, he decided to check out the rooms on the right first.

The first few doors were locked. He was on almost on the fourth door, when he noticed that the room at the end of the hallway was open.

Youngbin slowed his steps, fear starting to grip him. He was expecting a gory crime scene with blood all over the walls and maybe guts spilling out from the body but the room that he looked into was clean. The body was that of a man, sprawled on the ground.

_ Don’t touch anything. Now, what do you see? _

“Uh, the body. It’s a man. He’s old? His hair is almost all gray.” Youngbin said.

_ And the room? _

His eyes flicked around. It was music room, he told the bowtie. There was a piano just in front of where the body is. There were also various instruments around the piano. There are windows on the left and right sides but they were shut close.

Youngbin looked behind him. The door was flanked by two wooden cabinets. One was filled with various trophies and the other looked like books and vinyls. There was a gramophone to the left of the room and next to that was an arm chair.

_ Check on the door? The lock specifically.  _

Youngbin bent down, inspecting the lock. It looked pretty old and a part of it was hanging off. He said the same to the bow- to Inseong.

“You there!”

Youngbin snapped up straight upon hearing the voice. A man was walking towards him and it took him a second to recognize that this same man was the one who was trying to calm the crowd downstairs.

“What are you doing here?” he barked, causing Youngbin to cower.

_ Investigating. Say you’re investigating _

“I-I-Investigating,” Youngbin blurted out.

“Sir!” Two more people in party clothes appeared flanking the man.

“Take this kid, Juho-ssi.” He gestured to Younbin.

“Yes, sir,” Juho-ssi replied. He stepped up to Youngbin and gripped his arm, pulling him towards the other end of the hallway. 

“I-ah, what?! I didn’t do anything,?” Youngbin protested but the guy didn’t even look at him. The officer pulled out a key and opened one of the doors, throwing Youngbin inside with a warning.

_ Shhh, keep quiet. Just follow what I’m going to say. _

“I’m in this because I followed what you said,” Youngbin said. He really wanted to rip the bowtie from around his neck right then.

_ Just trust me. _

Youngbin started pacing. “What do I do? what do I do? I can’ have a criminal record.” He said out loud.

_ Can you please just relax? I am thinking. Describe the room to me again. _

“No! What the fuck? I have to get out of this. I can’t get in trouble!” Youngbin replied. He can feel his body trembling.

_ The only way you’re getting out of this trouble is if we find the real killer! _

Youngbin stopped. He hated how the bowtie made sense. He hated the bowtie, period. But-

“Ok fine,” Youngbin said, throwing his hands up. “Fine, you win,”

He huffed and resumed his pacing, starting to describe the room again. Thankfully, the bowt-, Inseong, was quiet, just a hum here and there to signal that he’s listening.

“And that’s it. Before that big guy caught me,” Youngbin sighed, finally plopping down on the bed. He suddenly felt exhausted, not the kind that you get from physical labor but from... everything, really.

As he sat in the quiet of the room, he couldn't help but wonder how his life has come to this. In one moment, he was just trying to work, trying to earn more money to continue his studies and then at the next moment, here he was in an empty room talking to his goddamn bowtie.

_ Mr. Kim. _

Youngbin kept quiet. Maybe if he ignored it it will get tired and-

_ Mr. Kim. I can hear you breathing. _

“What do you want?” he asked it.

_ When the police come, tell them you're a consulting detective.  _

"But i'm a waiter!" he exclaimed. “Look, I have the waiter outfit and my name is on Jaeyoon’s list!”

_ I know. I know. But you have to believe me. Tell them it's a murder. Don't back down, Mr. Kim. _

“Youngbin” he whispered.

_ What? _

“Call me Youngbin. Hearing you say Mr. Kim gives me the creeps.” Youngbin said. If he’s going to commit to this, then might as well let the bowtie call him by him name.

_ Okay then, Youngbin. _

The door opened at that moment and the guy who caught him walked into the room. The guy had gray streaks on his head but he doesn't look that old, if Youngbin had to guess, the man might be in his early 50s or maybe late 40s.

"So, what's your name kid?" he asked, pulling the chair from the dresser and placing it in the middle of the room, facing Youngbin.

"Kim Youngbin.” He answered.

"And you work here?” the man, sat down.

"I'm one of the waiters, sir,"

“Ok Youngbin. What were you doing when i found you a while ago.”

_ Tell them you're investigating. _

He looked at the man and swallowed. "I-i was investigating, sir?"

"Investigating? How can a waiter know anything about investigating?” He scoffed, “I think you've watched too many CSI, kid"

_ It was a murder. Tell him it was a murder. _

Youngbin looked at the floor, thinking. He knew that he should listen to the bow- Inseong and yet, he knew that saying it was murder would make him look guilty or something?

"It's a murder, sir. That wasn't an accident. Someone killed him." He heard himself say.

The man's eyes widen just a bit as but he managed to school his face blank in the next second. He stood up and started pacing. "The room was locked, kid. And the windows were sealed shut. You've seen the room. You've seen the body... The corpse was just there,"

_ Medical Examiner Report _

“The medical examiner's report,” Youngbin parroted, sounding unsure of the words.

The man raised an eyebrow. "We'll have that in a few hours,"

"We have to interview all the guests. We can't let anyone out of the house,” Youngbin said following what the bowtie is telling him.

"We're already doing that,"

Youngbin fell silent, his gaze stuck to the floor. The bow- Inseong was awfully quiet that he can hear the seconds tick by. It doesn’t help that the man was now standing still, eyes boring holes into his skull.

“Okay, kid, how about this,” Youngbin looked up. The man sounded, hopeful?

The man ran a hand through his hair, ruining his perfectly coifed hair. “I don’t know why but my gut is telling me to trust you,” those eyes bore into Youngbin once more. “So, if you can prove that this is a murder and if you find me that murderer, I will let you off the hook,”

_ Yes, yes, yes. Say yes Youngbin _

“I-yes, sir. Of course,” he replied.

“But of course, I can’t let you run around on your own. I’ll put one of my people to watch you and of course, you have to do everything by the law, alright?”

He nodded. The bow- Inseong was whooping.

The man stuck his head out the door and called for someone. In the next second, the man who dragged him to the room entered.

“This is Juho-ssi. I’m assigning him to you for this case.” The man clapped Juho on the shoulder. “Juho, this is Youngbin-ssi. He’ll be helping our investigation. I trust that you’ll get along well,”


	2. Chapter 2

Youngbin was escorted out of the room and towards where the body was found. He can hear Juho and the man, Chief Jung, whispering a few steps behind him and he knew for a fact that he was the topic of their conversation.

 _Ignore them._ He heard Inseong say.

There was another person standing in front of the room and she saluted upon seeing the two people behind Youngbin.

“Well, then, Youngbin-ssi. I’ll give you some time to check the room before the crime scene techs arrive. Let me know what you find,” the chief said, tapping him on the shoulder. He nodded towards Juho and the other officer before hurrying back to the party.

As soon as the man was out of earshot, Juho wheeled around to face him. “I don’t know what you said to the chief but you better get us some results,” he said, voice deep and rumbling.

Youngbin nodded. Juho glared at him a second longer before gesturing towards the room with a shrug.

“Yes, right,” Youngbin stepped back into the room.

Thankfully, Juho and the other officer remained outside although Juho was still looking at him suspiciously.

“I’m back in the room,” he muttered softly.

_ Hmmm, can you check on the lock again. _

Youngbin groaned. Checking on the lock would put him in the near vicinity of Juho and his searing eyes but did as he was told. He was about to reach out to touch the door when Juho strode towards him.

“Yah! Don’t touch anything with bare hands,” he barked, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket and handing it to him.

Youngbin chuckled nervously. “Sorry,” he muttered reaching out for it.

“It’s an old type of lock. Those ones you just need to slide slideways,” he muttered, crouching down. Youngbin placed the handkerchief on the small knob that you hold onto to slide the lock and tried it a few times. “Wow, it moves easily even if it looks old,” he commented.

_ Check the other door. _

Youngbin moved towards the other door. The small metal frame was hanging loosely, only one of the screws keeping it on the door remained.

Youngbin walked a few more times around the room, answering all of Inseong's questions. Twice he caught Juho looking at him weirdly but he shrugged it off.

_ Can we talk to the one who found the body? _

Youngbin relayed the question to Juho who merely nodded and signaled for him to follow.

_ What do you think? _

Youngbin asked as softly as he could, as they made their way back downstairs.

I honestly don’t know what to think. But i'm pretty sure that solving the mystery of the locked room would point us to our murderer.

"Are you sure that it's a murder?"

A chuckle. _Maybe_

That stopped Youngbin in his tracks.

“Why the fuck are we doing this then if you're not one hundred percent sure?” he hissed as quietly as he could.

_ Relax. Just talk to the witnesses first. _

Youngbin pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling the beginnings of a terrible headache. He could run, he could say he was sorry for stringing the police up but…

 _You have to see this through, kid_ , the bowtie said as if reading his thoughts.

"I know," Youngbin muttered, quickening his pace to catch up to Juho.

They passed by the ballroom where the party was held and Youngbin was kinda glad that the people are still in there although the arrival of more police officers made him a tad uncomfortable.

Juho led him to the room right next to the ballroom and gently opened the door.

An ungodly wailing came from somewhere inside the room and Chief Jung looked at them helplessly. From where he was standing, Youngbin can see a clump of red curled on the couch.

"Lee Siyeon. Madam Lee, if you will. She’s Sanghyuk’s girlfriend. She's the one who saw the body first,” the chief said acknowledging their arrival.

“Sanghyuk?” Juho asked.

“That’s the name of our victim,” Chief Jung replied. “As for the other details, well,” he gestured helplessly at Madam Lee.

_ Go talk to her. _

"Uhm, sir, may i?"

Chief Jung sighed. "She's all yours. Good luck,"

"Madam Lee?"

Her wails got louder but Youngbin, egged on by the bowtie, continued to walk towards her.

"Madam Lee, i want to ask a few questions,"

_ Louder, kid. _

"Madam Lee! I have a few questions," Youngbin screamed throwing caution to the wind. He might as well just do whatever at this point.

Thankfully, that caught her attention. She stopped and sat up, looking at him with annoyance.

"I just have a few questions," Youngbin repeated, looking a bit sheepish.

She nodded and sat up straighter.

"What were you doing when you found the body?"

She sniffled. "I-i was looking for him, you know? He's my boyfriend." she answered, tears starting to pool in her eyes once more.

"How did you know he was there? If the door was locked?"

She paused. "I heard music coming from the room."

“And you knew it was him?”

She huffed, crossing her arms in front of her. "I can just feel it, okay? Besides, Dada always goes somewhere whenever we attend these kinds of parties." she replied.

"And how did you open the door?"

"I called someone.. and he kicked the door open. "

"And this someone is?"

"Tachihara-ssi. I saw him walking around the hallway and called to him.”

_ Hmmm, interesting. We should talk to this Tachihara quickly. _

"Uhm, thank you for your time, Madam Lee. Uh, please have a good rest," Youngbin said.

She nodded and flopped back down on the sofa.

_ Youngbin, look for Tachihara. _

"Where is Tachichara-ssi?" he asked once he joined Juho and Chief Jung near the door.

The chief looked at Juho and nodded before the officer went out of the room.

"What do you think?" the chief asked, gesturing towards the pitiful figure of Madam Lee.

"I'm not sure, sir." Youngbin replied. "Uhm, can i excuse myself. I need to talk to my employer," he asked.

Chief Jung waved him off and Youngbin slipped out of the room quickly, hoping to find Jaeyoon first.

He went back to the ballroom, spotting Jaeyoon standing near the hallway leading to the kitchens. Youngbin carefully made his way towards the man.

"Where were you?"

"I was just... caught up with something. Listen, I-uhm, i'm helping the police with this," Youngbin said.

Jaeyoon's eyes widened upon hearing the words. "What? Why? Are you? Why?"

"Relax, will you? It's just... it's a long story. For now, i'm... a consulting detective?" he replied.

His friend gaped. "Are you serious? Do you even hear what you're saying?"

Youngbin sighed. "Look, i know this sounds weird, okay? but just trust me?"

Jaeyoon regarded him for a full minute, his eyes flashing from surprise and disbelief. "This isn't... you didn't do this right? It's not that?"

"No! Why would you even- I was standing in the room just like you?"

"Okay, okay," Jaeyoon breathed. "Just, tell me what's going on afterwards, yeah?"

Youngbin slipped off to the gardens after talking to Jaeyoon. The sight of the mountains towering over the mansion was refreshing, not to mention the breath of fresh air from the stifling mansion cleared his head.

"I can't believe this is happening," he muttered.

Thankfully, the bowtie was quiet.

 _I could just ignore it,_ Youngbin thought.

He could remove the bowtie and throw it somewhere here. In this big place, a single bowtie would be hard to find. And if they did find it, it's small enough that it'll end up in the trash.

_ I'm sorry. _

He jumped, almost forgetting the presence of the thing-being-whatever it is.

"What?"

_ I'm sorry for getting you into this. I know this is a lot to handle for someone like you. But- i just- i couldn't help it. I can't let something like this go. _

"Hey, bowti- Inseong. Why are you a bowtie? Why are you speaking to me? Why is it only me that can hear you?"

_ It’s a story for another time, kid. _

"You keep calling me, kid? Are you an old dude? And why do you know a lot about this kind of stuff?"

_ Even I don’t remember how I ended up this way? And to answer your question, no, I’m not old. I’m only in my twenties. _

“Twenties? That means you and me maybe the same age,” Youngbin exclaimed.

 _Well, yes. I’ve considered that_ , the bowtie said, a hint of laughter in his voice.

“Were you… are you a detective?” Youngbin asked. “In whatever previous life you had?”

_ Yes. I know I am.  _

The words were said with much conviction that Youngbin couldn’t help but believe in them.

"Youngbin-ssi! We found Tachihara," Juho’s voice rang from behind him, breaking the moment.

They did find Tachihara but he was passed out drunk in one of the bedrooms in the mansion.

_ Wake him up. _

"What?"

_ You heard me. Dump some water on him or something. _

"Are you serious?"

_ This is a murder investigation so yes, I am serious. _

Youngbin let out a breath. "Okay," he said, looking around. He spotted a half empty bottle of liquor laying on the carpet floor and picked it up. Youngbin considered going to the bathroom and dumping its contents in the sink but,

 _To hell with it_ , he thought.

He walked closer to the figure on the bed and overturned the bottle on the man’s head. Juho’s made a sound that’s between a breath and an ‘eep’ and it was enough to even make Youngbin smile.

Tachihara woke up with a yelp.

"WHAT THE FUCK!!"

He sat up and glared around the room, eyes falling on Youngbin and the now empty bottle he was holding.

"YOU LITTLE SHIT! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

He stood up suddenly and lunged towards Youngbin but Juho was there in the next second, restraining the man.

"Tachihara-ssi. This is a murder investigation. We're asking for you to cooperate!" Juho bellowed but the man continued to struggle. Juho repeated his words with a little more force. Somehow, the man stopped struggling.

"Let me go," Tachihara said sharply, tapping on Juho's arms around him.

"Will you sit down and cooperate if i do?" Juho asked.

A nod. Juho immediately release him but kept a close distance.

Tachihara huffed, making a show of straightening his collar as he did so. He eyed Juho warily then glanced at Youngbin.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"Tachihara-ssi?" Youngbin started, hand absently gripping on the bottle.

"Yes?"

"Uhm, we just have to ask a few questions. About -the body,”

"Fuck, right, Sanghyuk's dead," Tachihara whispered, settling on the bed once more. His earlier annoyance gave way to an open expression of shock and sadness.

"Right? Yeah, what do you need from me?" he asked, softly this time.

"You were the one who kicked the door open?" Youngbin said.

"Yes, yes. Siyeon ran up to me and asked me to help her. I said no at first coz but she got her hands on me and started dragging me somewhere. I remember the door not budging and she started talking that I got so annoyed so I kicked it open. And then,” He took a deep breath, running his hand through his hair.

“I didn’t understand it at first, you know. And then, Siyeon started screaming and pushed past me, I didn’t..,”

“It’s okay, Tachihara-ssi.”

“Next thing I knew, you’re here waking me up,” he ended.

“Did you notice anything weird about the room or about Madam Lee perhaps?”

He huffed. “My entire world was spinning then, I don’t think I’ll be able to notice anything weird in that moment,” he replied.

“Right, yes. Thank you, Tachihara-ssi,”

“If there’s nothing else, I’d like to get back to sleep,” the man said, already sprawling himself back down on the pillows.

_ Do you notice anything weird about him? _

Youngbin’s eyes raked over the man. From the disheveled hair to the neck tie hanging loosely on his neck, to the discarded jacket and vest at the foot of the bed, and even to the weird piece of tape stuck on the soles of his shoes.

“Other than that piece of tape stuck in his shoe, nothing,” Youngbin said.

_ Hmmm, well then, that was something. Can we go back to the room, please? _

“Do you think it was him? You know, maybe he and the girlfriend,” Juho said as soon as the door closed behind them.

“I don’t really know,” Youngbin answered. They spent the rest of the walk back to the room in silence.

The room was busy now that the crime scene techs have arrived and Juho excused himself as he went to talk to some of the guys. That left Youngbin standing outside the doors, wondering if he should just walk in or-

_ Go inside. Describe the room to me once more. _

“We’ve already been there. What more is there to look at?”

_ Just, will you please do it, please? _

Youngbin sighed. “Fine, fine. I’ll do it,”

He stepped into the room once more. Youngbin kept to the sides, making sure that he wasn’t interfering with the people working all around.

He described the room as Inseong requested and this time, Inseong kept bugging him about the smallest things. Youngbin did as he was told but at this point, he wasn’t sure which were the tools that the crime scene techs brought and the ones which were originally inside the room.

“There’s like strings and rags and more vinyls, that’s about it.”

A crime scene tech moved out of the way. “Oh and there’s like, a measuring tape, you know the one that springs back,” Youngbin said, seeing the little box stashed haphazardly on the cabinet.

“You! What are you doing here?!”

Youngbin looked around, thinking that he was the one being referred to. But all heads were turned towards the door, where another figure lurked. Said figure was another man who looked to be middle-aged. His face was flushed from embarrassment and from where he was standing, Youngbin can hear him spluttering on his words as he tried to explain himself.

“I should talk to him, right?” Youngbin asked.

_ Ah, you’re finally thinking like a detective! _

He walked towards the man and the stirred him out of the room and into the hallway.

“I’m helping with the investigation,” Youngbin started. “Mr…”

“Mori. Mori Ougai.” The man supplied.

Mr. Mori was wringing his hands as he looked worriedly towards the room.

“Do you think they found something?” he asked.

Youngbin raised an eyebrow. Even without deduction skills or police training, this man was acting suspicious.

“How are you related to Sanghyuk, sir?” he asked.

“I’m his secretary. Well, I’m his father’s secretary but you know his father died and so I became his secretary,” Mr. Mori’s eyes were still glued towards the room.

“And what are you doing here, Mr. Mori? Surely, you know that this is an ongoing investigation?”

He whipped his head towards Youngbin. “I-ah, I-I… I should get going,” he said and walked away quickly.

“Well that was something,” Juho said as he joined Youngbin in the hallway. Mr. Mori took one last glance towards them before descending the stairs and disappearing from view.

“I should put someone to watch him,” the officer beside him said and Youngbin couldn’t help but nod.

+++++

Its already 2 in the morning and most of the people have already been sent home after being interrogated, the only ones remaining in the mansion are those the police deemed are crucial.

Youngbin was given the room where he was first taken into but he can’t seem to find any hint of rest. Inseong had been awfully quiet in the last hour that Youngbin’s starting to panic – images of him being thrown in jail filling his mind.

_ Youngbin! _

The voice startled him and he almost sighed in relief.

_ I think I got it! The lock room! I think I figured it out! _

+++++

“This better be good, Youngbin-ssi!” Juho warned, stifling a yawn as he walked inside the music room.

Youngbin nodded, not trusting his own voice. The bowtie had explained to him how the locked room was perfected and he was still reeling from everything.

“Are we waiting for someone else?” Juho asked, to which Youngbin just shrugged.

“I have finally figured out the mystery of the locked room and I believe a demonstration would be best,” he announced, repeating the bowtie’s words.

Youngbin pulled out a measuring tape, a roll of strings and a brown tape from his pocket.

Next, he placed the measuring tape under the cabinet nearest to the gramophone and taped it down. He then pulled the tape, tied a string near the hook and taped the other end of the string on the vinyl. He then hooked the measuring tape on the gramophone’s arm.

He looked back at his audience, taking careful note of everyone’s expressions.

“Juho-ssi, please go out for a while,” Youngbin said.

The officer looked towards Chief Jung and the latter nodded. Youngbin closed the door behind Juho and resumed the demonstration.

He tied a string on the small knob of the sliding lock and walked back to the gramophone where he wrapped the other end of the string around the small rod in the middle of the turntable. When all this was done, Youngbin turned on the gramophone.

He let the vinyl make several turns causing the string tied to the lock to grow a little taut. Then, he placed the arm gently on the top of the vinyl.

He can feel the chief’s eyes looking at him as music swelled all around them.

After a minute, two things happened.

First, while the string wrapped around the turntable rod grew taut, it managed to pull with it the lock and slide it in place. Youngbin had asked permission to screw back the other part of the lock for the demonstration and right now, the brass lock slid securely in place.

Second, as the string taped to the vinyl tightened, it managed to lift the tape measure’s hook off of the gramophone’s arm. The tape zipped back to its case under the cabinet, carrying the vinyl with it and effectively hiding it from view.

 _Now, it has become a locked room_ , the bowtie whispered.

Youngbin couldn’t help the gasp that escaped his lips earning him a quizzical look from the chief.

“Juho-ssi, open the door,” Youngbin shouted. Immediately, the door rattled in place as the officer tried to open it from the other side.

“Kick it,” Chief Jung said as he and Youngbin moved to the sides.

They heard Juho counting down to three before the doors blew wide open. And behind Juho was one other person.

“This better be good,” Tachihara-ssi said scratching the sleep off his eyes.

“Ah, Tachihara-ssi, we finally figured out the mystery of the locked room,” Chief Jung said carefully.

“And, what has this got to do with me?” he asked taking tentative steps inside the room.

“We figured that the gramophone was the key. Would you mind picking up the vinyl before I explain things,” Youngbin quipped.

The man nodded absently and walked towards the exact same cabinet where the vinyl was. Tachihara laid a hand on the cabinet and was about to crouch down when he suddenly paused.

“Tachihara-ssi?” Chief Jung’s voice broke the silence that was slowly enveloping them.

Tachihara straightened and slowly turned to look at all of them.

“You were outside when Youngbin started the demonstration and yet you went towards the exact place where the vinyl is without any hesitation,” the chief’s voice has turned deadly serious, the weight of his words hanging in the air around them.

Tachihara bowed his head. “I want my lawyer,” he mumbled.

++++

Juho gave him a ride to his apartment the next day. During the drive, the officer was telling him of Tachihara’s confession but Youngbin was too sleepy to really take note of the details.

“Hey, one last thing, how did you know it was Tachihara?” Juho asked as he pulled out in front of Youngbin’s building.

“The kicking the door thing,” Youngbin said, remembering what the bowtie told him that night.

Juho remained silent waiting for him to continue.

“The force that’s needed to kick that door open and also the fact that you have to kick it exactly where the lock is,” he continued. “Remember Tachihara saying that his world was already spinning? When we interviewed him about it?”

The officer hummed, clearly trying to remember that particular statement.

“Anyway, if he’s as drunk as he claimed to be, he would have a hard time doing that. Also, when we got to the room there were no traces of the strings and other stuff so obviously, as soon as Madam Lee went screaming to the party, he cleaned the place up.”

“Hmmm, okay,” Juho muttered.

“Well, if there’s anything else, I’d like to get some sleep,” Youngbin said, sliding off the police car without waiting for the officer’s response.

_ You did good, Youngbin-ah. _

Youngbin chuckled. “Yeah, well. I didn’t really do anything,” he said.

_ Hmmm, but you managed to put up with me. That’s a feat! _

He shook his head. “Can we talk about this some other time, please? I really want to get some sleep.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is it. We have reached the end.  
> If you're here then wow, a big THANK YOU for reading this no matter how absurd this whole thing is. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.  
> And of course, i want to thank Moi for giving me this idea lol
> 
> Also, i hope i managed to explain the lock room perfectly and no it wasn't my idea i've picked that off of DETECTIVE L, which is a chinese drama which stars my hubby, bai yu. (Watch it it's really good)
> 
> Here's the link to that episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBX4Di4XTag&t=756s  
> and the solution for the lock room is at around the 10 minute mark. 
> 
> Also the names here are a mess... i'm obsessed with bungo stray dogs and somehow Tachihara and Mori just wanted to make an appearance.. the characters in this fic, really just jumped at me lol except for the two main ones.. so basically as i'm writing and whatever the first name i typed that's it. lol 
> 
> And that's about it.. come scream at me on twitter @zuriesarchive
> 
> THANKS


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